Valve boxes

ABSTRACT

An underground valve housing made of waterproof and insulating material is sealed around a valve in a pipe. The housing has an air shaft which rises to the surface of the ground to vent any escaping gas and to give ready access to the valve in case it must be closed under emergency conditions.

Unlted States Patent [1 1 3,674,169

Miller 1' July 4, 1-972 [54] VALVE BOXES 2,186,431 1/1940 Riley ..220/sxm1 Inventor: John, m 1031 14th S9 3:332:33? 111323 2111511: ....1::5a3i61,101,892 6/1914 Vibber .220/3.94x

[22] Filed: Sept. 22, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 74,375

[52] 0.5. CI. ..220/4 R, 220/8, 220/18,

[51] Int. Cl. ..B65d 7/24, 865d 1 1/18 [58] Field of Search ..220/3.92,3.94, 4 R, 4 A, 4 E, 220/8, 18, 80, 81

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,008,138 7/1935 Le Duc..22o/3.92x

Primary Examiner-George E. Lowrance AttorneyAlter, Weiss & Whitesel 57ABSTRACT An underground valve housing made of waterproof and insulatingmaterial is sealed around a valve in a pipe. The housing has an airshaft which rises to the surface of the ground to vent any escaping gasand to give ready access to the valve in case it must be closed underemergency conditions.

4 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJUL 41912 INVENTOR JOHN H. MILLER ATTQR N EYS VALVE BOXES My invention relates to underground valve boxes,and more particularly to a water resistant enclosure that allows readyaccess to the valve enclosed therein.

There are many reasons for failures in underground plumbing. Forexample, ground water, moisture, and other contaminents tend to rust,rot, or otherwise attack metal in the pipes, joints, and valves. Alsoelectrical or galvanic currents flow between underground metalsresponsive to naturally occurring potential differences at the molecularlevels. Here the underground water behaves as a battery. The galvaniccurrents eat away one of the metals, depending upon the direction ofcurrent flow. Finally, the pressure difierentials between the inside andoutside of the pipe tends to cause some leakage. Thereafter, thematerials which are inside and outside the pipe may combine to form achemical reaction which corrodes the pipe and its fittings. Accordingly,it is desirable to provide a waterproof housing of electricallyinsulating material which encloses the pipe and its joints.

In addition to these and other considerations, underground pipes presentstill other problems. First, the valve is provided since it may becomenecessary to close it under some emergency conditions. Second, the valvemay tend to vent gas under some conditions. If so, the gas should beconducted to the atmosphere to prevent damage to vegetation. Therefore,it is necessary to provide an air shaft extending from the housing tothe surface of the ground. However, such air shaft should not provide apassage by which contaminents may enter the housing.

Accordingly, an object of my invention is to provide a housing devicethat encloses valves to prevent water, ice or other foreign matter fromrendering them inoperative or inaccessible.

Another object of my invention is to provide a housing device thatprevents corrosion or other deterioration of the valve and itsaccessories which may be caused by environmental conditions.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a housing device thatprevents underground migration of gas to or from a leaking valve.

A still further object is to construct the housing device in a mannerwhich permits the valve box cover to release any gas leaking from thevalve into the atmosphere.

A further object is to provide a housing device of the characterdescribed that is able to accommodate various sizes of valves and pipesof varied diameter.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a device that willenable maintenance and periodic checking of the enclosed valve.

In keeping with an aspect of the invention, these and other objects areaccomplished by a housing device which is simple in construction andeasily applied. Here a suitable non-corrosive, electrically insulatingmaterial is formed into a housing for underground valves. The housingprevents galvanic currents and blocks the flow of water, chemicals, andother material which may cause corrosion. The housing is open to thesurface of the ground to give access to the valves when leakage occurs,and for maintenance purposes. Thus, my invention provides a device thatpermits a sealing of the enclosure to eliminate moisture from contactingthe valve and yet permits gas leakage to be discharged to the surface ofthe ground.

Other and further objects of my invention will become more apparent asthe description proceeds, when taken in conjunction with the drawings,in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross sectional longitudinal view of the body and tubesforming a part of the inventive device;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken along line 2-2 ofFIG. 1, showing the valve housing and illustrating in cross section thesealing flanges;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the valve-type surface lid; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the complete valve enclosure or housing.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts and featuresthroughout the several views. More particularly, the reference character10 generally identifies the valve (shown in phantom) with the pipes 11and 12 leading to and from the valve 10.

The inventive housing, for the protection and enclosure of the valve 10,includes a lower section 13 having outwardly projecting flanges l4, andan upper body section 15, also having outwardly projecting flanges 16.The upper and lower sections correspond in size and contour. Theseflanges l4 and 16 may be of any suitable thickness and they are adaptedto receive and support clamping members which are crimped on, as shownat 17. (see FIGS. 2 and 4). A suitable gasket 17' or O-ring may bepositioned between the flanges as a moisture seal.

The body sections 15 and 13 are to be constructed of a pliable material,such as plastic, impregnated fiber glass, or the like. The clampingmembers 17 may be of any practical and eflicient design such as springmetal.

Both the body 15 and the lower section 13 terminate into semicircularsections shown as 18 and 18', to encircle the outer peripheral surfaceof the pipes 11 and 12. These openings may be sealed by conventionalwashers, or gaskets attached and supported thereby, in any efficientmanner to seal the enclosure formed by the parts 13 and 15.

By referring to FIG. 1, it will be noted that the body 15 is equippedwith an upper tubular section 19, here shown with annular corrugations20. Another tube 21 slidably engages the tubular section 19 and isguided by inwardly extending into the tube by ridges 22, forming anintegral part of the tubular section 19. Suitable packing 19' may beadded at one or more places as a sealing material between the tubes.

The tube 21 is here shown as equipped at its lower end with a pluralityof sections 23 formed by the slots 24 and extending inward. The upperend 25 of the tube 21 is angularly spread outward to accommodate a valvelid assembly, shown in FIG. 3. The tapered end 25 is equipped with innerridges 26 which engage the slots 27 (see FIG. 3) of a downwardlyextending section 28, forming a part of the recess 29 of the lid 30. Thelid supports the insert 31 and places it in a horizontal relationshipwith respect to the top surface of the lid 30.

The insert 31 is provided with a pliable plug 32 retained in position bythe ridges 33. A locking bolt 34 slideably guides the insert 31 andholds it in a downward position by means of the spring 35 attached tothe locking arm 36 which, in turn, is supported at 37 by the downwardlyextending section 28, forming a part of the lid 30.

From the above description it will become apparent that the deviceenables easy emergency access to the valve. It puts no strain on thevalve or the pipe, and it remains in a constant relationship to thevalve. It requires no special cleaning when adjustments are made.

Although I have shown a specific arrangement and construction of theparts and features constituting my invention, many changes may be madewithout effecting the operativeness of the device. Therefore the claimsare to be construed to include all equivalents which fall within thespirit and scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. A protective housing for a valve located under ground comprising abottom half and a mating top half,

said mating halves when coupled together forming a horizontal slitrunning parallel with the pipes feeding into and out from said valve,

each of said mating halves having flanges thereon extending outwardlytherefrom,

means for sealing said flanges together to prevent moisture from leakinginto said housing, mating semi-circular openings in said halves to fitaround the pipes entering and leaving said housing,

gasket means sealing said semi-circular openings,

clamping means snapped on over said flanges to secure said halvestogether, and

3 4 venting means extending vertically from said top half above an innertelescoping tube vertically and rotatably movable said valve to thesurface of the ground, said venting within said outer tube, and meansbeing integral to said top half and providing a said inner tube havingmeans at the bottom end thereof for passage for receiving a shafi usedto open and close said g ping the an k f a d al to Open and close said"hm 5 valve by turning said inner tube within said outer tube. 2. Thehousing of claim 1 wherein said halves are made of The hmlsinfl 0f claim3 and Packing means betwcen an electrically insulating material which iswaterproof. P 1 of the telescoping tube to lmwide a Waterproof erea 3.The housing of claim 2 wherein said venting means comprises an outertube that is integral to said top half, It t s

1. A protective housing for a valve located under ground comprising abottom half and a mating top half, said mating halves when coupledtogether forming a horizontal slit running parallel with the pipesfeeding into and out from said valve, each of said mating halves havingflanges thereon extending outwardly therefrom, means for sealing saidflanges together to prevent moisture from leaking into said housing,mating semi-circular openings in said halves to fit around the pipesentering and leaving said housing, gasket means sealing saidsemi-circular openings, clamping means snapped on over said flanges tosecure said halves together, and venting means extending vertically fromsaid top half above said valve to the surface of the ground, saidventing means being integral to said top half and providing a passagefor receiving a shaft used to open and close said valve.
 2. The housingof claim 1 wherein said halves are made of an electrically insulatingmaterial which is waterproof.
 3. The housing of claim 2 wherein saidventing means comprises an outer tube that is integral to said top half,an inner telescoping tube vertically and rotatably movable within saidouter tube, and said inner tube having means at the bottom end thereoffor grasping the handle of said valve to open and close said valve byturning said inner tube within said outer tube.
 4. The housing of claim3 and packing means between the sliding parts of the telescoping tube toprovide a waterproof seal thereat.